By Gabriel Manyati
South African activist and March and March founder Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma has hit back at Zimbabweans celebrating a recent death prophecy against her, questioning why the same energy is never directed at their own president.
In a lengthy Facebook post, Ngobese-Zuma expressed frustration after watching Zimbabweans seize on a prophecy by Zimbabwean preacher, Obey Tichafa Mukanhairi. In mid-July 2026 the prophet claimed he had seen a vision of her being shot, describing “street gunshots, three in the chest, one on the forehead,” and warned she would not survive until November the following year unless she reformed.
The post quickly circulated widely, drawing condemnation from South Africans who called it incitement, while some Zimbabweans appeared to celebrate the prediction.
Ngobese-Zuma did not hide her anger. “I’ve watched as Zimbabweans celebrated their prophet saying I will die and they are eating the prophecy up and celebrating my death in advance!!! A Genuine question is you Zimbabweans are happy to wish me death and not once have you and your prophets done the same for Mnangangwa?” she wrote.
She contrasted her own activism with what she sees as misplaced priorities among critics. “I’m in my country fighting to make it better and you would rather I die so you can feel some sort of victory rather than wish for your oppressor to die so you can go home and live in peace? Really? And you people pride yourselves in being Zimbabweans?”
The March and March leader, a former radio presenter, who rose to prominence through campaigns purporting to prioritise South African citizens in jobs, schools and healthcare, has long argued that undocumented migration places heavy pressure on public services. Her movement has organised marches under the banner of putting South Africans first, drawing both strong support and accusations of xenophobia.
In the same post she sought to separate her personal views from broader public sentiment.
She said: “It’s not Jacinta that doesn’t want you in South Africa, it’s South Africans so whether you wish me death or whatever it doesn’t change anything about your situation in Zimbabwe!!! You are wasting so much of your time busy with JACINTA and South Africa while you don’t realise that you are not improving your life or Zimbabwe in anyway, yet eventually going back to Zimbabwe is no longer optional!”
The remarks come against a backdrop of strained relations. Ngobese-Zuma has previously criticised Zimbabweans living in South Africa for failing to confront problems at home, at one point calling Zimbabwean men “cowards” for abandoning their country rather than challenging President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s government.
She has also backed calls for Zimbabweans to return and fix their own nation instead of focusing on South African politics.
Mukanhairi’s prophecy had already provoked outrage in South Africa, with the March and March movement labelling it dangerous incitement. The prophet later defended himself, insisting he was not organising any attack and that Ngobese-Zuma had many enemies of her own. No independent evidence of a concrete threat has been made public.
Ngobese-Zuma’s latest comments underline her determination to continue her work despite the hostility. By turning the spotlight back onto Zimbabwe’s political leadership and the choices of its diaspora, she has framed the celebration of the prophecy as a distraction from the real issues facing Zimbabweans both at home and abroad.
Whether the sharp exchange cools tensions or inflames them further remains to be seen. What is clear is that the activist shows no sign of stepping back from the confrontational style that has made her one of South Africa’s most polarising public figures.
